Leviticus 17:4

4 and offereth not an offering to the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of witnessing (and then bringeth it not as an offering to the Lord to the entrance of the Tabernacle of the Witnessing); (it is) as if he shedded (out) man's blood, (and) so he shall perish from the midst of his people.

Leviticus 17:4 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 17:4

And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the
congregation
Near to which stood the altar of burnt offering to offer it upon, and the priests ready for such service: now the Lord would have every sacrifice brought thither

to offer an offering to the Lord before the tabernacle of the Lord;
that it might be offered publicly, and be known to be offered to the Lord, and not to idols or devils, as in ( Leviticus 17:7 ) ; and so to prevent private idolatry, and private persons from intruding into the priest's office; and this was typical of the acceptance of all spiritual sacrifices in the church of God, through Christ the minister of the tabernacle, which God pitched, and not man; and who is the door into the house of God, where such sacrifices are publicly to be offered up:

blood shall be imputed unto that man, he hath shed blood;
which though it was only the blood of a beast, yet being shed as a sacrifice for man, and typical of the blood of Christ to be shed for man, was sacred and precious to God; and therefore he resented the shedding of it to any but himself, or by any person, or in any place but by his appointment; such a man was to be punished as a murderer, idolatry being equally heinous in the sight of God as murder, see ( Isaiah 66:3 ) ;

and that man shall be cut off from among his people;
not merely excommunicated from the church of God, deprived of the privileges of his house, but even put to death; for such a man was guilty of blood, that is, of death, and therefore to be put to death either by the hand of the civil magistrate, if his case was known and came under their cognizance, or by the immediate hand of God by a premature death, which seems to be chiefly intended; also see ( Leviticus 17:10 ) .

Leviticus 17:4 In-Context

2 Speak thou to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the sons of Israel (and to all the Israelites), and say thou to them, This is the word which the Lord commanded, and said,
3 Each man of the house of Israel shall be guilty of blood, or (of) great sin, if he slayeth an ox, or a sheep, either a goat, in the tents, either out of the tents (inside, or outside, the camp),
4 and offereth not an offering to the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of witnessing (and then bringeth it not as an offering to the Lord to the entrance of the Tabernacle of the Witnessing); (it is) as if he shedded (out) man's blood, (and) so he shall perish from the midst of his people.
5 Therefore the sons of Israel ought to offer their sacrifices to the priest, which they slay in the field, that those be hallowed to the Lord, before the door of the tabernacle of witnessing, and that they offer those peaceable sacrifices to the Lord. (And so the Israelites ought to bring to the Lord the sacrifices which they kill in the field; they shall bring them to the priest, at the entrance to the Tabernacle of the Witnessing, and offer them as peace offerings to the Lord.)
6 And the priest shall pour out the blood upon the altar of the Lord, at the door of the tabernacle of witnessing; and he shall burn the inner fatness into odour of sweetness to the Lord. (And the priest shall throw the blood against all the sides of the altar of the Lord, at the entrance to the Tabernacle of the Witnessing; and he shall burn the inner fat, to make the sweetest aroma to the Lord.)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.